It was a crushing way to end their bid for a World Series berth in Bangor, Maine but the Manhattan Beach Senior League All-Stars said goodbye to the Little League Baseball Western Regional Senior Tournament championship on a bases-loaded walk in extra innings Tuesday night in Ontario to lose 4-3 against a Pearl City, Hawaii ball club.
The title game was sent into extra innings after Manhattan Beach scored a run in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings to tie the game at 3. Hawaii scored their three runs in the bottom of the fourth.
Statistically, Manhattan Beach outhit Hawaii with nine hits to their four. However, Manhattan Beach also outdid Hawaii when it came to walked batters, accumulating eight and only receiving four.
In the end, the team's strong play was doused by an unevenness that kept them from gaining enough momentum to seal the deal, which they had opportunities to do.
Pitchers Trevor Franklin and Blake Hammerstein delivered on the mound, Trevor striking out five batters, Blake three. Trevor threw 54 strikes out of 93 pitches, Blake 32 strikes in 58 pitches. They each gave up two hits.
But the timing of their walks was poor [Trevor walked three, Blake four] despite each allowing only one earned run apiece.
In the end, with bases loaded and two outs, the pressure was on for relief pitcher Will Proctor who was brought in in a make-or-break scenario after Blake walked three batters in a row. Then, all it took was Will's eighth inning walk on a three balls and one strike count with bases loaded to end the team's World Series bid.
On the batting side, Trevor Franklin and first baseman Robert White went two for three, impressively leading the offensive charge. Other players to get a hit were Luke McCauley, Blake Hammerstein, Jackson Michalski, Rhett Rudnicki and Logan Pollack.
Hawaii exhibited some smart base running that got them their first run in the bottom of the fourth. Then, a grounder picked up by shortstop Zack Chan turned into a flubbed play that allowed two more runners to cross the plate when he couldn't secure out number three to end the inning.
Manhattan Beach battled back, though, from the 3-1 score to snag a run in the next two innings while keeping Hawaii quiet.
More sharp play from Hawaii would put an end to Manhattan Beach in the top of the eighth when a bases-loaded fly ball to right, hit by Zack Chan, resulted in a double play when Hawaii's relay throws to home plate were on the money and Manhattan Beach catcher Brett Davis couldn't get to home plate before being tagged out to end the inning.
Manhattan Beach Manager Carlos Rojas praised his players for their hard-fought battle against Hawaii, calling both teams "champions." He thanked parents for supporting their sons and the team.
The Manhattan Beach team amassed a 13-2 record and allowed four or more runs in just three of the 15 games they played, two of those three four-run+ games coming at the hands of Pearl City, Hawaii.
Rojas noted that the Manhattan Beach Senior League All-Star teams have reached regional finals three of the past five years, with a trip to the World series in 2010 and a championship loss last year to a Hilo, Hawaii team that won the World Series.
"I feel blessed by our success as a league and look forward to more great summers to come," he said.
The Pearl City, Hawaii team will now travel to Bangor, Maine to play in the World Series as the Little League Baseball Western Regional Senior Tournament champion.
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